FicWad

“Frank!” Ray dropped to his knees to join the shaken guitarist as he knelt on the floor. “It’s okay,” he added with a sympathetic tone. He knew now that this was genuine; Frank was clearly not faking this reaction.
The still trembling guitarist looked up at him.
“I wasn’t making it up, Ray.”
“No, I know, I see that now. I’m sorry I didn’t believe you,” Ray replied comfortingly.

“Are you?” Bob smirked. “That’s nothing to how sorry you’re going to be!”

“What happened?” Ray asked with so much concern and sincerity in his tone, Frank was able to relax a little.
“I… I saw Bob.”
“He’s in there?” Ray glanced into the room and then back to Frank as his heart skipped a beat as he realised that merely seeing Bob wouldn’t scare his friend unless something was very wrong. “Wh… what… is he okay?” he stammered not wanting to ask the real question.
Frank shook his head.
“He’s a ghost, I saw him in the mirror; he was calling out to me.”
Ray sat back on his heels, momentarily reserving judgement. The idea was ridiculous, wasn’t it? But clearly, Frank had been scared by something.
“In the mirror?” It sounded suspiciously to him as if Bob had played some sort of trick on Frank. It was of course true, but he assumed that Bob was hiding somewhere in the room. The true elaborate nature of the trick would elude him.
Frank nodded.
“I’ll have a look,” he said as he got to his feet, helping Frank up too. “Do you want to show me?”
“No!” Frank said firmly. “I’m not going back in there.”
Frank was adamant and Ray was now even more certain that he was telling the truth.

Frank watched with unease as Ray walked back into the study. He was torn; he knew he really didn’t want to go in with him, but neither did he want to remain in the hallway on his own either. He fidgeted and shifted from one foot to another as he decided what to do. Occasionally, he glanced into the room, grateful that Ray had left the door open and he could see him moving about; it made him feel much less alone, even though he was technically in another room. Ray looked at the large bookcase opposite the mirror and frowned. It would be typical, he thought, for a house of this size and age to have secret rooms hidden behind apparently everyday furniture. Had Bob found one and used it to torment Frank? But it still didn’t explain how he got out of the cell. If there was one thing he felt he knew for sure, it was that that cell was solid stone – no way out.

Behind Frank, a mahogany wall panel silently slid back and Bob smirked as he saw the obviously edgy guitarist waiting impatiently for Ray to rejoin him. Ray was taking his time. He felt terrible for not having believed his friend and was absolutely determined to find whatever it was that had terrified him so much. But for Frank, every second left alone in the hallway was agony. Having watched Ray moving around in the room for a few minutes without a single incident, Frank had just about reached the decision to join him when his eyes flew open in terror as a hand clamped itself firmly over his mouth as an arm wrapped around him. Strong arms pulled him backwards through the open panel into the passageway beyond. Struggling and trying desperately to cry out through the hand, Frank’s muffled cries carried through into the study and Ray spun on his heels and ran for the source of the noise. As he reached the hallway the mahogany panel had already slid noiselessly back into place. Ray looked around frantically; there was no sign of the younger man.

“Frank!” Ray yelled. The hallway was large but Frank had been there, standing right by the door. He had glanced occasionally at him, noticing his unease; it was highly improbable that he would just wander off. In fact it was simply unthinkable. Frank was scared and unwilling to be left alone, but the fact remained that he had vanished. Ray frowned; he had definitely not imagined that cry. Something had happened to him, something very strange was happening and he didn’t like it. He had to find Gerard and Mikey; they had to be told.

“Enjoy your little visitation from Ghostly Bob?” the drummer whispered in Frank’s ear.
His only reply was for Frank to struggle in his grip once more. Despite his height, Frank was muscular and strong, but even with all his strength, he was unable to break free.
“Don’t forget, Frankie,” Bob kept his voice low, “all those pounds I shed didn’t happen without doing a few weights myself. Now,” he began with a mocking tone, “if I move my hand away, can I rely on you not to shout for help?”
Frank nodded.
“Liar!” Bob chuckled as he dragged his still struggling friend back down the passageway. “Let’s see if we can find something fitting for you to do for the next hour, shall we?”

*

Gerard and Mikey had headed towards the living room and he hadn’t seen them return. Remembering the layout of the rooms, it could only mean that they were in the living room or dining room, assuming they hadn’t headed downstairs to the kitchens. Hearing their voices in the dining room, Ray picked up his pace and opened the door.

“Guys!”
“Found him?” asked Mikey hopefully.
“No, but now Frank’s disappeared,” he told them with a frown.
Gerard returned the frown with one of his own.
“Off sulking somewhere, is he?”
“No, Gee, you don’t understand. He’s disappeared!”
“What do you mean, ‘he’s disappeared’?” Gerard was confused by the use of the term. “You mean he’s sloped off because we yelled at him?”
“No,” Ray’s voice bordered on shouting, “I mean he’s disappeared. One second he’s standing there, the next, I turn my back, I hear a cry and he’s gone!”
“A cry?” Mikey asked his eyes widening. “You mean he was attacked?”
“Jumped more likely,” Gerard pronounced, “by Bob by any chance?”
Ray shook his head then shrugged.
“I don’t know, I didn’t see anything, but something really strange is happening. Frank said he saw a ghostly reflection of Bob in the mirror calling to him.”
Gerard’s eyes narrowed.
“They’re in this together! They’re trying to freak us out.”
Ray shook his head. “Frankie seemed pretty shaken, I think he was really scared.”
“Nah,” Gerard shook his head. “Something’s not right.”
“What if there’s someone else in the house with us?” asked Mikey.
Nobody wanted to answer that question. It was plausible. Mikey had thought he had observed a movement at the top of the staircase earlier. Was it possible?
“I don’t think so, Mikes, why would someone be here?” Gerard asked, shaking his head at his younger brother.
“Because it sounds better than the alternative?” He looked down to his feet. “What if this place really is haunted?”
Gerard sighed; this place was really getting to all of them.
“Mikey, they’re playing tricks on us, it’s the only possibility,” Gerard tried to reassure him.
“But…”
“Right, Ray?”
Ray nodded. He didn’t really believe it, but he had nothing to offer as an alternative.
“Come on,” Ray added, “let’s try the kitchen.”

All three had felt the tension mounting, the slight doubt in their minds that grew with each passing moment that this house was more than met the eye. As they descended the stairs to the kitchen they all felt a cold shiver as the unnatural chill of the room hit them like a wall.
Mikey stopped dead in his tracks and pointed a shaking finger at a large bladed cooks knife sticking out of the centre of the pine kitchen table. All eyes fell on the still quivering knife.
“No one came past us, Gee!” Mikey pointed out, his voice shaking almost as much as the knife blade.
Gerard’s mind raced. What the hell was happening here?!
“Okay,” he forced himself to concentrate but the confusion and nervousness in his voice were clear to all. “We check the doors… s..see if they’re still locked.”
“No,” Mikey backed up a few steps, “I’m not going down there.”
Gerard frowned.
“Ray,” he gathered his courage, “go with Mikey back upstairs, stay with him.”
“You can’t go on your own!” Ray replied surprised by his astonishing decision.
“It’s just a trick, I’m sure. It’s just Bob and Frank playing us.”
Ray didn’t seem at all certain, but it seemed logical. But it seemed a shame that nothing logical had happened all night – maybe that would have helped?
“I’ll just be a few minutes,” Gerard assured them, “wait for me upstairs.”
Ray nodded and silently followed Mikey back to the dining room.

*

“Comfortable?” Bob asked with a broad grin across his face.
“Let me off this thing!” Frank demanded, pulling frantically on the ropes lashing him to the rack in the dungeon.
Bob pushed the lever and the ratchet moved a few notches pulling the ropes tight and Frank’s arms and legs out straight, but without actually stretching. Bob dropped to one knee at the guitarist’s side.

“Come on, Frank!” he laughed. “Where’s your sense of humour? Besides, didn’t you always want to be a little taller?”